


Antlers (Guy Berryman version)

by cherrylng



Category: Coldplay (Band), Muse (Band)
Genre: AU, Fluff and Humor, Immortality, M/M, Magic, Mild Language, Mythical Beings & Creatures, Romance, Technology, alternative universe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-09
Updated: 2016-06-09
Packaged: 2018-07-14 01:23:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,349
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7146404
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cherrylng/pseuds/cherrylng
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In the Forest of Dean near the village of Symonds Yat in Gloucestershire, Guy meets a man with antlers on his head.</p><p>“What, you’ve never seen someone shed their antlers before?”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Antlers (Guy Berryman version)

**Author's Note:**

> Music: Antlers - Apparatjik

The first time Guy saw him, he was collecting wild mushrooms in the Forest of Dean near the village of Symonds Yat during autumn.  
   
He'd thought that his eyes were playing tricks with him, or that this guy was playing some sort of prank that Guy just stumbled upon him by accident.  
   
But his eyes didn't deceive him in any way, and it isn't even something like a really well done visual makeup and costume. There is a male human about the same age as him, wearing what looks like medieval clothing made with a mix of linen, wool, and fur.  
   
The guy is looking at him as well, looking like… well, literally like a deer caught in headlights.  
   
On the very day that he first encountered the man with the antlers on his head, by chance he had brought his camera along to take pictures of the forest and the mushrooms that he was collecting, and managed to snap a few photos of the humanoid creature before it bolted into the deeper parts of the forest.  
   
When he returns home with the collected wild mushrooms, Guy checks his camera. It was well taken, not even blurry at all. Once he prints the photo out with a larger frame, he checks again.  
   
The best and simplest description is that he’d found a human with antlers attached to the top of his head. There was no doubt about it.  
   
For days and weeks afterwards, during that time he couldn’t find the man in the forest, Guy does his best to maintain a good level of logic and rationality in his mind. That what he saw back then was all but a well done prank and shouldn’t bother anymore. Yet a part of him wants to seek out the man, to find out whether if what he saw was real or not.  
   
\-----  
   
It wasn’t until spring that they meet once more when Guy went back to the same area of the woods near where he’d encounter the strange person to take some photos there for work. Only this time, it was long enough to make an impression and introduce one another.  
   
By that, it meant Guy stumbling upon and watching in shock as the humanlike creature snaps one of his antlers off with the help of a tree.  
   
His footsteps attracted the attention of the creature, who turns to look at him with wide eyes. Guy only stares back.  
   
Guy has a camera at hand that he brought to take pictures for a commission, but his fingers didn’t move at all.  
   
The humanlike creature could have quickly run back into the woods and never let Guy see him again, but he stood still at where he is.  
   
Their long stare down eventually irritated the strange man.  
   
“What, you’ve never seen someone shed their antlers before?” the humanlike creature snaps at him.  
   
That snaps Guy into responding back.  
   
“Mostly on deer,” Guy answers. “Not on a human. You’re not one, aren’t you?”  
   
At that, the stranger hesitated, scared that Guy might come and hurt him.  
   
“I-I am one! This,” he points at the sole antler still attached to his head, “is a fake, you know.”  
   
“Probably not,” Guy says. “Or maybe there’s a film shooting nearby and what you’re wearing must be some really well done visual makeup and costume, trying to get rid of the prop on your head.”  
   
“Y-Yeah! It’s that!” the stranger responds, quickly latching onto what the Scot said.  
   
Guy crosses his arms and stares at the humanoid creature.  
   
“...You made that up to see that I was lying, didn’t you?” the humanlike creature asks, making a face once he figured out that Guy won't buy an excuse that the Scottish man himself made up.  
   
“Yep,” Guy says. “I could’ve said that it must be one elaborate and dedicated long term prank that you’re setting up as well and you would just roll with it.”  
   
Caught, the strange humanlike creature gave up on trying to hide or run away, and instead stays where he is.  
   
“So now that I know that you’re real, whether or not if you’re actually human, will you tell me what you are? And what is your name?” Guy asks.  
   
The humanlike creature stays silent.  
   
“I’ll tell you mine first,” Guy offers. He gives a smile. “My name is Guy Berryman.”  
   
“I’m Matthew. Matthew Bellamy,” the humanlike creature says. “I’m the guardian of this very forest.”  
   
\-----  
   
“So what are you, exactly?”  
   
“A human.”  
   
“Funny. I mean what do you exactly do? What do you work as?”  
   
“I’m a photographer, mostly specialise in nature photography.”  
   
Matthew nods, more in acknowledgement rather than interest.  
   
The first few days of getting to know each other has Guy learning what kind of person Matthew is.  
   
First of all, is that Matthew is hundreds of years old. The forest guardian won't tell him exactly how old he is or when he was born, but he does tell Guy that he was old enough to have noticed that the French and Latin speaking monks and priests that came to visit the forest he was born in eventually gave way for English speaking ones when the Black Plague struck and it has stayed that way since then.  
   
Second, Matthew is not exactly someone who is easily fascinated by what Guy shows to him, especially when it comes to things like technology that Guy tries to show but the forest guardian already knows about it.  
   
The camera didn't impress him since he'd seen it before, and the evolution that its technology went through. Although Matthew does concede that most cameras nowadays show more detail and colour than the ones he knew before when Guy shows him the photos in his digital camera.  
   
A satellite phone didn’t impress him as well, since he’d seen people carrying it around before for the past few decades. Not that Guy was carrying one around with him. To Matthew, its only function was to talk to someone from somewhere by tapping some buttons and sticking a brick by your ear, and some types needed too much effort to prepare before you can even make a call.  
   
In hindsight, he should’ve known that Matthew can keep up with the times judging by how close the villages are to the edges of the forest, even despite what Guy guesses that Matthew is wearing 19th century clothes today.  
   
The thing that _did_ fascinate Matthew, however, is his smartphone. That such a small device can cover a broad range of uses from a number of items that would have been heavy and usually needed several people to lug them around, including the camera that Guy often brings with him. And when Guy found out that his broadband coverage reaches far inside the forest and he shows Matthew the Internet… well, Matthew is practically glued to the mobile device and will be hard pressed to return it to him.  
   
So right now, he’s reading up a Wikipedia entry on the list of forests in the United Kingdom, reading the words with rapt attention. Guy can hear mutterings from the forest guardian about how they didn’t put in the old names that some of the forests have that are listed in there.  
   
Since Matthew is distracted by the phone, Guy takes the chance to take a good look at him.  
   
If he takes his camera out and snap a photo at him, the first and most striking feature of Matthew will be his blue eyes. Guy has a friend from Devon who has blue eyes as similarly striking as Matthew’s, but would lack the feeling that he is older than he appears to be.  
   
His body is small and thin and lithe, yet also fit enough to travel in and around such a large area of the forest. It's a stature that is befitting to someone who lives and dedicates their lives to protect and look after the Forest of Dean.  
   
His brunette hair is short and fluffy, with a couple of spots on his head parted away for where his antlers are positioned.  
   
The antlers are slowly growing back inch by inch. There’s velvet covered over the bones. He is tempted to touch it, to find out if they are as soft as they look, but he knows better than to touch it and piss Matthew off when the antlers are still sensitive and growing.  
   
But he can’t help but notice that there’s something odd about it. Considering that he just met an immortal creature that is a guardian of a forest and can grow and shed antlers like a deer, it’s already odd enough as it is.  
   
Aside from the antlers, Guy is looking at a pretty handsome man.  
   
Matthew reluctantly handed him back his phone when it was time for Guy to go home, and there was only 6% in battery power left.  
   
\-----  
   
When Guy was out on lunch in the city with his colleague, Tom, his eyes land at the sight of a Vodafone shop. Specifically, on a number of smartphones with installation fees listed with it.  
   
It would be a nice gift for Matthew, Guy thinks, and a way for the forest guardian to be kept up to date with the world beyond the forest he lives in. And, maybe, they can keep in contact by text or call on days when Guy can’t come and see him in the woods.  
   
But then, he remembers that Matthew does not live in nearby village or the like. He lives _in_ the woods with no electricity. Even if there is coverage in that area and he bought a phone, there would be no electrical outlet that is within reach for Matthew to recharge a phone without getting caught.  
   
It’s a silly idea that Guy puts away at the back of his mind as he listens to Tom talk about the holiday he and his girlfriend had by the Southern coast of France. It's a good idea, but impractical.  
   
He stops at an O2 shop after work to buy a Samsung Galaxy, along with a few power banks at an electronics shop.  
   
Matthew is more than surprised and elated when Guy bought it to him days later, along with a verbal promise that the Scot will help him replace and recharge any used up power banks whenever he comes to visit him.  
   
He may have won Matthew’s heart with what he gave to him, but Guy reminds himself that it was just a gesture from his part.  
   
A day after he gave him a phone, Guy is surprised that Matthew sent him his first selfie.  
   
\-----  
   
When summer came around and Matthew got rid of the velvet on his antlers, Guy finds out why the antlers looked odd to him this whole time.  
   
“Are those-- Are those _leaves_ growing on your antlers?” Guy stares at it. The leaves made it look as though there's a small tree growing on top of his head rather than actual antlers.  
   
It was also very, very hard not to laugh at the sight of it.  
   
“It’s summer,” Matthew grumbles out an excuse, obscuring his face down to his arms. “This happens every summer.”  
   
Guy thought that a pouting Matthew looks adorable, and snaps a picture of him slouching before the forest guardian can stop him. He made some annoyed noises, but otherwise didn’t do anything else about it.  
   
Guy kept that one picture in an external hard drive, deleting it from the memory card and locking it up in a file with a password.  
   
At least it explains on the strange behaviour behind why Matthew planted his previous antlers to the ground.  
   
\-----  
   
Around early autumn, Guy came by to collect wild mushrooms again. This time, Matthew acts like a guide and is more than happy to help find and collect some with him.  
   
They also went to check on the antlers that became the trees and shrubbery of the forest. Matthew is wrong what he assumed on the latest antlers that he’d shed and planted months ago will become. The one on the day he and Guy met didn’t become a hazel tree, but rather a young common juniper tree.  
   
The other one is an apple tree, not much to Matt’s surprise.  
   
“Apple trees are the most common fruiting trees that grows when our antlers are shed off our heads, after chestnuts,” Matthew explains.  
   
“I thought apples only came around to Britain with the ancient Romans,” Guy points out.  
   
Matt waves his hand dismissively. “I’m a few hundred years old, not thousands.”  
   
By the time it was starting to get dark, they collected so many mushrooms in both variety and numbers that Guy had to convince Matthew to split the share.  
   
\-----  
   
Matthew texted to Guy the next day during working hours to tell him about how he used some of the wild mushrooms that they collected to make a spread, and wants to give a jar to him. He even sent him pictures of it.  
   
Tom teases Guy about not telling him who is this mysterious Matthew that seems to have gotten his attention lately, and that if Guy doesn’t want that wild mushroom spread, can he have it instead?  
   
Guy tells him to shut it and to not look at his texts over his shoulder.  
   
On the evening, he bought a loaf of bread with him to share the wild mushroom spread with Matthew. He does give a jar of the spread to his friend and colleague a couple of days later to prevent him from whining about not been given one.  
   
\-----  
   
When December came around, Guy brought his camera with him alongside a thermos of hot chocolate. He brought the hot chocolate along because Matthew asked for him to bring it with him when they talked on the phone last night.  
   
It hasn’t snowed yet, but the temperatures are cold and the weather is windy. Most animals have gone into hibernation, with the exception of a few animals able to survive the season and Matthew.  
   
Under the colder temperatures, the leaves have completely fallen off of the guardian’s antlers, leaving it bare and appear as a pair of normal looking antlers. Matthew is wearing a cloak made out of the pelts of red deer and felt. Looking from a distance, he looks more like a druid.  
   
“Maybe you should’ve asked me to get you a winter coat,” Guy notes.  
   
“I actually do have a coat,” Matthew says. “A forester gave one to me decades ago and it’s still in good condition.”  
   
“So why are you wearing a cloak instead?”  
   
“Because I look good in it,” Matthew says smugly.  
   
_Fair point_ , Guy concedes. And he does look good wearing it.  
   
“And I’m just taking this out to be aired and worn before my trip. There will be a celebration for the winter solstice up North in Scotland in about a few weeks that I have to go. There are other guardians who will be attending it as well.”  
   
Curious, Guy asks to know more about this particular tradition, and Matthew gives out a detailed explanation behind this pagan tradition over cups of hot chocolate. Within a couple of hours, however, both of them are shaking from the cold weather.  
   
“Damn, it’s really cold. Let’s go to my home to talk more about it instead,” Matthew suggests.  
   
He takes Guy through a route that took about ten minutes of walking before they emerged into a small clearing.  
   
In the middle of the clearing, there is a little cottage, nestled deep in the forest. There’s a garden planted with herbs and vegetables that couldn’t be grown naturally in the wild.  
   
“It used to have a thatched roof before the previous foresters gave me tiles to switch it to,” Matthew says, pointing out the very sloped roof covered in red tiles.  
   
“Do you miss having a thatched roof?” Guy asks.  
   
“I’ll miss it fondly when I think that leaking water and constant hay replacements are things to remember fondly of,” Matthew says in a deadpan voice. The effect was immediately broken when he smiled and laughed.  
   
“It's astonishing that no one had noticed the cottage in the forest,” Guy says. Oh, how he wishes to take pictures of it right now! But he held back from such temptations. This is Matthew’s home, and he wouldn’t do this without his permission.  
   
“It’s because of enchantments and wards around this clearing. Nobody can see this place, no matter if you’re on level or above ground. Not even satellites or cameras can capture pictures of my home,” Matthew turns to him and gives him a grin. “You need a forest guardian’s permission to allow you to see their dwellings.”  
   
It makes Guy feel honoured, that he is invited to a personal and sacred place to Matthew.  
   
Upon entering the cottage, there is only one room, with a fireplace, bed, a table with three chairs, a shelf filled with stuff, and a wardrobe all in there. Only the kitchen is separated from the room with a heavy curtain acting as a door. The forest guardian lives in a frugal lifestyle.  
   
It was a bad place and a horrible idea on Guy’s part to kiss Matthew in his own home.  
   
It could’ve been written off as the result of the mood that Guy was in and the feelings that he has been holding for the immortal being, but that was written off when Matthew kisses him back. Eagerly so.  
   
\-----  
   
Guy wakes up in a bed with hard pillows and fur blankets that is not his, yet the smell of it might as well remind him of home.  
   
Matthew is looking at him with a serene smile.  
   
“You’re the first human that I ever let to stay overnight in my cottage,” he says.  
   
“Really?”  
   
“Yes. I don’t mind letting you stay here for a few more nights if you want to,” Matthew’s grin turns into a lascivious one, leaning towards Guy to kiss him sensuously. “I can show you proper hospitality, as what I should do as a host and as a forest guardian.”  
   
It makes Guy feel even more honoured, and aroused.  
   
“Is this part of the hospitality?” Guy inquires, indicating at the position they are in.  
   
Matthew giggles. “No. Consider what we did last night was part of something I always wanted to do with you for some time now. Hospitality treatment comes later, after we have some fun.”  
   
Guy Berryman is the damn luckiest man to have fallen in love with Matthew.  
   
\-----  
   
On December 21st, Matthew sent Guy greetings of the celebration of the winter solstice from Scotland. The message came with hugs and kisses.  
   
On December 25th, Guy sent Matthew greetings of Merry Christmas from his parents’ house. He sends back hugs and kisses as well.  
   
\-----  
   
Spring came around, and it is time for Matthew to shed his antlers. Guy wants to observe how the process is done, though he voices his concern on whether it hurts for Matthew to do it or not. It’s a silly thing to be concerned over it, but over the months of consummating their relationship, Guy has a right to be concerned as Matthew’s boyfriend.  
   
“It’s not as painful as it looks,” Matthew assures Guy. “It’s like how most bucks shed their antlers off around this time before it grows back. I’ve done this for centuries, ever since I started growing them when I got my growth spurt.”  
   
Guy jumps when Matthew knock his forehead against a tree branch hard enough that the sound is audible to them and he hears a loud yelp of pain come next right after.  
   
There is a long bout of silence between them as both men processed on the information of what just happened.  
   
It is Matthew who finally broke the silence by saying, “That was an accident.”  
   
Guy does his absolute best not to laugh. He doesn’t say anything witty or the like, instead watching with amusement as Matthew gets onto the business to be rid of his antlers.  
   
When the process is complete –Matthew swears that it’ll be oak this time- he takes a look at Matthew. With the sole exception of the two small bony spots where his antlers will grow back, which would be easily covered over with his hair or a hood, Matthew looks no different than any other human.  
   
This gives Guy an idea.  
   
\-----  
   
Guy is leaning against his car just outside of the village of Symonds Yat, waiting as Matthew changes into the clothes that he is lending to the forest guardian behind the safety of the shrubbery.  
   
To say that Matthew is excited for a trip out from the forest that he resides in is an understatement. He literally jumped with joy and said yes over and over when Guy came up with the idea.  
   
And, with a week off from work, Guy wants to take Matthew to places like cities and towns, to places that Matthew has always thought about and dream of going, but can only hear of it and know about it through the internet on his phone because of what he is.  
   
Guy had to tell Matthew to stay calm and behaved as he helps him put on the seat belt.  
   
“Ready to go to Gloucester?” Guy asks once he gets in the driver’s seat and sets up the directions in Google Maps.  
   
“Are you going to make me wait even longer?” Matthew huffs.  
   
Matthew didn’t like the fact that there’s such a thing as speed limits on how fast a car is allowed to go on the roads. Thankfully the car radio and his phone kept him preoccupied, and traffic was light enough that they arrived at the city in less than an hour.  
   
Matthew stays glued to the car window when they arrived in the city, looking at the sights and trying to soak it all in as much as his eyes can see.  
   
They found a car park to park the car and take a walk around Gloucester.  
   
“Are you amazed by how much the city has changed?” Guy asks Matthew, showing him the cathedral first.  
   
“I always knew the city is here, that it got bigger. Just never thought that I’d be standing here… and see how much bigger it had gotten over time,” Matthew says in awe.  
   
If he shows Matthew what London now looks like, Guy thinks, the forest guardian will be blown over by how the size of London dwarfs over any other city in Britain.  
   
\-----  
   
Matthew stayed with him for a week.  
   
In Gloucester, they drove and walked around to take in the sights and smell of the city. For that one day, they are both tourists to a city that Guy commutes to and works in.  
   
By Gloucester Quays, Guy wanted to take Matthew out for something nice to eat, but Matthew was way ahead of him and was fascinated by Nando’s and its spicy chicken. Matthew insisted on wanting to buy the bottled sauces to bring back to the forest with him once he discovers how delicious they are.  
   
After Gloucester, Guy drove him to Bristol the next day, with the city also less than an hour away from Coleford.  
   
And then it was Bath. And then Newport. And then Oxford. The furthest that they went to was Birmingham, the second largest city in Britain.  
   
Throughout the week, Matthew stayed in Guy’s home. A small, two-bedroom detached house by the outskirts of Coleford. It is small by standards, but a lot bigger than Matthew’s cottage.  
   
Matthew also had fun with Guy in his house, specifically the bedroom. Guy had to introduce to the immortal being of what modern day lubricant and condoms are and why they’re so important.  
   
He also gets a disgusting history lesson from Matthew of what condoms used to be like before they were mass produced, made with latex, and thrown after a single use. It was really disgusting.  
   
When the week is over, the bumps on Matthew’s head is noticeable and hard to hide, and Guy drives him back to the forest.  
   
When he and Matthew kissed and hugged before he has to leave, the Scot can feel Matthew’s reluctance in letting him go. When he drives off and looks at the rear view mirror, Matthew is standing by the road, watching his car until Guy can no longer see him in the dark.  
   
\-----  
   
One fine summer, under the scheduled times that Guy comes to the forest, Matthew didn’t come to meet him.  
   
Concerned, Guy went to his little cottage to check and see if he’s there. He wasn’t even there as well. When the photographer stayed overnight in the cottage and still saw no sign of Matthew returning, and not pick up his phone no matter how many times Guy called him or left voicemails, he got worried.  
   
Where is Matthew? What happened to him?  
   
It’s bad that he can’t find Matthew anywhere in the forest. Worse is that he can’t exactly ask for anyone’s help because how can he explain to them that the man he is looking for is not human?  
   
The longer time passed, the more Guy is worried, to the point that it affected his professional life. Even Tom gave his concerns and hoped that Matthew can be found soon, wherever he is.  
   
A month later, Guy was woken up at four in the morning by his phone, and he sits up when he sees that it’s Matthew calling him, telling him that he’s back in the forest. He quickly puts on his clothes and get the car keys.  
   
He had never driven so fast out to the forest.  
   
The first thing when he sees Matthew again is to hug him, to know that it really is him in the flesh. The second thing after that is to yell at him.  
   
“You were gone for over a month!” Guy exclaims. “Where have you been?! You got me worried sick!”  
   
“I was visiting some forest guardians in other forests,” Matthew tries to explain. “I found one in the New Forest that was about to move to _Huiccewudu_ before I gave them the offer to come here.”  
   
“Huicce what?” Guy stares at Matthew blankly.  
   
Matthew rolls his eyes. “Wychwood forest. It’s in Oxfordshire.”  
   
“What are you offering to them to come here?”  
   
“Well, I had to find someone to replace me on looking after this forest,” Matt says with a shrug.  
   
“Why would you want to do that? Are you moving to another forest?” Guy asks, his concern now shifted to what Matthew has been doing lately.  
   
“Well, um… you need a replacement for when you no longer want to be a guardian to the forest,” Matthew admits. Then he adds, “And I do need a place to live in once I give up my role and become a human.”  
   
It took some time before things clicked in Guy’s mind.  
   
“Are you saying that you want to give up being immortal and move in with me?”  
   
Matthew nods.  
   
“But…” there’s so many theories in Guy’s mind in why Matthew would want to give up being a forest guardian, what that meant. But all he can ask is with one word. “Why?”  
   
The centuries old forest guardian fidgets on his feet before he gives his explanation behind it. “I have had these thoughts over the seasons, even before that weeklong trip that you took me out of the forest. I was fine for centuries living like this, to live and fulfil my duties as a forest guardian. But having met you, to befriend you, and to fall in love with you, it made me realise something.  
   
“I couldn’t bear to live without you,” Matthew says. “The thought that you’ll grow old and die, while I still remain young and living, got me afraid of living forever without you. So I made my decision in that I would rather become a mortal man, to grow old alongside with you rather than to live forever with a part of myself go missing when you’re finally gone.”  
   
Guy has mixed feelings for this. On the one hand, he feels outright elation that Matthew wants to live with him. That this means they can live together and Matthew can see the world with him. On the other hand, this seemed like a really big decision, like moving to another country to start over kind of big decision. Both decisions are similar in terms of the fact that it means giving up a life you once knew of.  
   
“Are… Are you sure of that decision?” Guy asks.  
   
“It wasn’t an easy one. The others were doubtful as well, but I stand firm in what I believe in,” Matthew says sincerely. “I don’t know what I’ll do once I become mortal, but—“  
   
“But as long I have you by my side,” Guy interjects, holding Matthew’s hands and looking at him with a smile. “I’m sure we’ll figure it out.”  
   
They press their lips together, all the fears and worries that Guy held in him from the time Matthew was gone just melted away like that.  
   
“Don’t ever do that to me. To leave and never tell me a word of where you went,” Guy says with a husky tone.  
   
“I tried to contact you, but I ran out of battery power and the one power bank I brought with me didn’t last long during the journey. It was horrific without the use of my phone,” Matthew whines, not enjoying the horror of having to go through a month without his phone.  
   
Guy rolls his eyes and pulls Matthew in for another kiss.  
   
\-----  
   
In early spring of March, Guy watches as Matt shed off his antlers, alongside the watchful eyes of one Jonathan Buckland, a good friend of Matthew’s and soon to be new guardian to the Forest of Dean. This is the last time that Matthew will ever shed antlers for he will never grow them again after this.  
   
He watches as Matt carefully plants the antlers into the dirt. Plum trees, Matt swears that his hunch is right judging on the leaves that grew over his head over the summer and that his previous antlers did indeed become oak trees.  
   
Matthew pats the dirt around the planted antlers, his hands glowing in green as he utters out ancient words to cast an enchantment to promote a healthy growth for it as trees. That was the last of his duties as a forest guardian.  
   
Jonathan performs the rite on Matthew, a ritual that took Jonathan and Matthew months to study and learn since it’s so rare that a forest guardian is willing to become a mortal human. When the rite is done, it releases Matthew’s bonds as the guardian to the Forest of Dean, as a forest guardian and turning him from an immortal into a mortal being.  
   
Matthew Bellamy is no longer a forest guardian. The bumps that were once where his antlers had been has disappeared and hair grew quickly in its place.  
   
Matthew can no longer do magic and no longer as attuned to nature as he used to be, but his face doesn’t show any sign of regret of what he gave up to have what he wants.  
   
Jonathan puts a hand on Matthew's shoulder, both men exchanging a few words before the new forest guardian turns his attention to Guy.  
   
“Take good care of him,” is what Jonathan says to him with a very serious tone before he turns around and walks into the forest that has now become his new home and place to protect.  
   
Once Jonathan is gone, Guy takes a few steps towards Matthew to embrace him in a hug.  
   
“So now that you’re a mortal human, where would like to go to first, Matthew?” he asks.  
   
“To our home,” is Matthew’s answer. “And after that, there’s this one place that I’ve been dying to want to go.”  
   
“And where’s that?” Guy asks, already guessing that it might be London.  
   
Matthew grins, his eyes twinkling.  
   
“Nando’s.” 


End file.
